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Just another WordPress siteWed, 23 May 2018 09:25:39 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.64 Types of Transportation For Travelers to Parishttp://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=42
http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=42#respondWed, 23 May 2018 09:25:39 +0000http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=42Traveling in a new place is usually not an easy task. It would be much better to utilize your traveling time more efficiently if you could have a more understanding on the transportation facilities of your destination. This article introduces four types of transportation facilities in Paris which gives travelers to have a more in-depth understanding on Paris’s transportation services.

1. Metro and RER

Metro is the subway in the city while the RER (Reseau Express Regional) is the railway in the rural area. The subway service of Paris is started in 1900. Up to the present moment, there are 13 routes of subway and 4 routes of RER with total 367 stations which covers most parts of Paris. Therefore, if you could get used to the subway systems of Paris, it would be much leisure to travel around without any difficulties. The ticket fair inside city is unified as 7 Frs. for a single trip (billet). Ten- piece ticket booklet (carnet) is charged at 41 Frs. Besides, there is a Paris-Visite Billet which is specially designed for tourists. It is a pass for subway, RER and bus within a pre-set period of time. If you are staying in Paris for a longer period of time, you could choose to use the monthly ticket or the weekly ticket so that you take the subway, RER and bus whenever you like. Please be reminded that you have to take with you a personal photo (27 mm x 30 mm) in applying the fixed-time ticket in the station (guichet). Besides, it should be aware that the effective period of the monthly ticket is fixed from the first day to the last day of the month, and likewise Monday to Sunday for the weekly ticket. Therefore, you should count on the date when you buy the fixed-time ticket that how much the effective period is remaining.

2. Taxi

Taxi is the most convenient transportation as you could take it in any place. Usually it is easier to get the taxi in the taxi station (Tete de Taxi) in the main streets, hotel or the stations. Most of the taxi drivers are very familiar with the streets, and they could take you to your destination as long as you could mention you address clearly. Please be aware that the front seat is not for passenger, and one taxi could take 3 passengers in principal.

3. Public Bus

Most of the Paris residents like to take the public bus, but it seems to be quite difficult for tourists as they may not recognize the place to take off. However, you could enjoy the street scenery in taking the bus whereas the subway could not offer. Please be aware that you have to buy the ticket rather than just put the coins in. If you do not have a ticket, you have to tell the driver your destination, buy the ticket and put in the ticket cutter. Actually, you could use the subway ticket in taking the bus. You could just show your fixed-time subway ticket to the driver and you could get on and take off at any station you like. There is no station broadcasting service inside the bus and you have to ring the bell in advance before taking off. Therefore, it is suggested to take a bus road map at the information counter in the subway station, and find out the bus station name of your destination before you take the bus.

4. Tourist Ferry (Bateaux-Paris-ens)

Departure pier is at the Pont d’Iena which is near the Eiffel Tower. The cruise services could be divided as with and without meal provided. A single trip without meal provided is about 45 Frs. and the service hours are 10:00- 22:00 in summer time (depart in every 30 minutes) whereas 10:00-18:00 in wintertime (depart in every 1 hour). A lunch provided trip is about 300 Frs., departs at 12:30 while a dinner provided trip is about 550 Frs. departs at 20:30. Passenger must make advance booking for the meal provided cruise service and with formal attire on the trip.

]]>http://www.frontedelporto.org/?feed=rss2&p=420Kiev City Guide For Travelershttp://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=38
http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=38#respondWed, 23 May 2018 09:23:54 +0000http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=38You are planning thoroughly your trip to Kiev, surfing the web for information on Kiev best sights, restaurants and night clubs, and thinking how to plan your stay the best, what to see and where to go to… You are packing your new camera in order to make beautiful photos of golden domes, Khreschatik Street and Kiev parks… You are thinking what to wear and checking weather forecast for the days of your visit… In a few days or weeks you will get to another world with smiling people, ancient brick streets, monuments and cathedrals…

The legend says that there was a prince family of three brothers named Kiy, Schek and Khoryv and a sister Lybid. Kiy ruled a powerful Slavic tribe and was looking for a place to settle a new home for his people. When they came to the beautiful hills upon Dnepr river and saw wonderful panorama of blue river and seven hills covered with chestnut trees, they liked that place very much and decided to settle there. They established a city and gave it the name Kiev in honour of their oldest brother Kiy more than 1500 years ago. Prince Kiy and his family lived on one hill, Schek settled on another hill which got the mane Schekavitsa, and Khoryv settled on the third hill called Khorevitsa.

Since 882 Kiev became the capital on ancient powerful state called Kievan Rus. In 998 Kiev Prince Vladimir introduced Christianity in Kievan Rus by baptising Kiev population in Dnepr river. In 1240 the city was demolished by mongol-tatars who invaded Kievan Rus, and later it was rebuilt. Since 1362 Kiev and major part of Ukraine belonged to Lithuania and Poland and in 1654 it became part of Russian Empire and then USSR.

In 1991 Ukrainian people voted for independence of Ukraine and Kiev became its capital. Since that time it is the center of Ukraine’s political, economic and cultural life.

In November 2004 Kiev was the central place of Orange Revolution when hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian people protested against election falsification in the streets and later elected another ruling party and the President of Ukraine.

Kiev accommodation

Most visitors to Kiev prefer apartment or hotel accommodation. Kiev hotels provide security and a certain level of service according to their level (three star, four star, five star), Kiev apartments allow greater privacy and flexibility. Average single room in Kiev hotel will cost $100-130 per night, while a 1-room apartment with all amenities will cost $40-60 depending on its location, space and extra facilities like jakuzzi, home cinema, etc.

Kiev sights rating

I recommend you to visit:

Golden Gate of Kiev – the ancient gate to Kiev, which is now located in its very center, it is made of wood and stone with a small golden dome above

St Sofia Cathedral – one of the most beautiful Kiev cathedrals with Bell Tower and chestnut trees around the cathedral

St Vladimir Cathedral – cathedral in Kiev center where official orthodox religious ceremonies take place

St Andrew Church and Andrew Descent (Andreevskiy Spusk) – a popular place with tourists with numerous souvenir booths, old brick descent, art galleries and museums

Kiev Cave Monastery (Lavra) – the ancient monastery where you can see the caves where monks lived in ancient times, several churches and the largest Bell tower in Kiev

Russian Art Museum and Ukrainian Art Museum – art connoisseurs will get much pleasure seeing masterpieces of world art in Kiev museums

Kiev Opera and Ballet Theater – an enjoyable experience of listening to live classical music and watching dances

Pirogovo ethnic village – an opportunity to see old village houses, windmills and household appliances of different Ukrainian regions

War Museum – you can see there numerous tanks and war airplanes and the gigantic metal statue of woman symbolizing Homeland

Kiev Botanic Garden – in spring and summer you can see there beautiful trees and blossoming flowers

Mariinsky Palace – a majestic palace where official government ceremonies take place, it is surrounded by green park with panorama of Dnepr and its left bank

Independence Square – the very central part of Kiev, from which the distances to other cities are calculated, it has a large underground shopping center, central Post office, banks and restaurants

Khreschatik Street – main street in Kiev where people can walk on the highway on Saturday and Sunday

Vladimir Mount – a park on the mount with large statue symbolizing Prince Vladimir with cross when he introduced Christianity and baptized Slavic people.

What to wear

If you come to Kiev in summer, it would be nice to take a summer jacket, jeans and T-shirts, sandals or baskets and probably shorts or dress for the case of heat. For spring or autumn it is better to take a few warm things and a jacket. For the winter you will need a winter coat or a warm jacket, a few sweaters, a scarf, gloves and cap.

If you go inside a church or cathedral, women have to cover their head with a shawl, while men need to take off their hats.

Eating out in Kiev

To try delicious Ukrainian cuisine we recommend you the following Kiev restaurants:

Pervak restaurant – a medium-price restaurant located in 2, Rognedinskaya St. You can taste borsch and vareniks, small pies and various meat and fish dishes. The dinner will cost you about $30-50 per person depending on the food and drinks you choose.

Taras restaurant – located in Shevchenko park near major Kiev Museums, close to Kiev University. You can order various pancakes as well as national cuisine dishes. The dinner will cost you $35-55.

USSR restaurant – located near Kiev War Museum and Kiev Lavra Monastery in 42/1 Sichnevogo Povstannya St. and decorated with USSR symbolics. The dinner will cost you $35-55.

Puzata Khata (Big Bellied House) fast food restaurant which combines original interior in peasant house style, tasty Ukrainian food, vast choice of dishes and low prices. It is located in very center, 1/2a Basseinaya St., in the beginning of Khreschatik. Here you can try traditional Ukrainian pampushky, Chicken Kiev, different salads and main courses. On the first floor you can also choose one numerous cakes and even order fresh made juice. The dinner cost is $3-10 per person.

Zdorovenky Buly (Good Health to You)
That’s a very popular fast food restaurant located near Khreschatik metro station which probably has the largest choice of different foods: salad bar, pancakes, varenyky, pizzas, soups, tasty desserts. Its comfortable rooms are decorated in various styles: Chinese, Indian, Egyptian and Greek. It also has Tea bar with cakes where one can sit and talk. Dinner: $3-10 per person.

Ukrainian souvenirs

You can buy various Ukrainian souvenirs on Andrew Descent (Andreevskiy Spusk): embroidered towels, matrioshkas, wooden painted plates and eggs, glass souvenirs, small dolls in national clothing, paintings and clothing. There is also a souvenir section in Kiev central magazine (Tsum), located in Khreschatik St and a souvenir shop near St Sofia Cathedral.

]]>http://www.frontedelporto.org/?feed=rss2&p=380Long Beach, New York – The Hidden Jewel of Long Islandhttp://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=35
http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=35#respondWed, 23 May 2018 09:21:45 +0000http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=35Located on a barrier island just off of the southern coast of Nassau County, not far from the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, Long Beach NY is a relaxed beach city, a laid back counterpart to its Metropolitan big brother. The perfect locale for a summer escape, Long Beach is not only the home of a collection of fine restaurants, cafes, boutiques, and unique shops, it also boasts as its central attraction a beautiful white sand beach.

A sun loving town that slumbers peacefully through the cold of winter, it emerges from its hibernation Memorial Day weekend when the beach officially opens. Then the streets fill with sunbathers, swimmers and surfers eager to get out onto one of the cleanest beaches in Long Island. In keeping with an atmosphere of celebration, the local restaurants open up their outdoor cafés, and fill the air with the buoyant sounds of party music

Long Beach’s West End boasts Beech Street, a two mile road that runs parallel to the ocean, inland about a block. Along this strip there is a heavy concentration of restaurants, and boutiques. There, you are never more then a few feet away from a place to get something great to eat, or another unique shop that you wont find anywhere but Long Beach. At night many of the restaurants turn into night clubs and bars, creating a stretch of parties all within walking distance of one another.

Downtown Long Beach is Park Ave. The main road, it runs parallel to the Beach’s boardwalk, but is inland about 4 blocks. Along this street you can find just about anything, from furniture stores and beach shops, to juice bars and health stores. While generally commercial, this area also boasts some of the finest dining in town, as well as a host of outdoor cafés where you can have a quiet bite and enjoy the sun.

A relaxed beach city, Long Beach NY has unique stores, great food, a fun atmosphere, and a beautiful beach. Located less then an hour from the city, it is the perfect place to take a short sabbatical from the flurried excitement of the metropolitan scene. While friendly and laid back, Long Beach also has some of the best restaurants in long island, as well as a host of unique shops and boutiques, and an exciting night life. Relatively unknown, the city by the sea is the hidden jewel of Long Island New York.

]]>http://www.frontedelporto.org/?feed=rss2&p=350Memphis – A City of Music, Food, Love and Fun – Come Take a Look With Us!http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=32
http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=32#respondWed, 23 May 2018 09:17:38 +0000http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=32MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE

Overheard on a flight to Memphis, a man said to his wife “We’re surely not going to go to Graceland, are we?” at which she indignantly replied, “Are you kidding? I’m not going to Memphis without going to Graceland!”

No, traveler – don’t go to Memphis without going to Graceland. See it all.

Memphis is history and its history is music and the river – and that means the blues and race, tackiness and elegance, beauty and hard times. It means what happens when musical genius triumphs over the toughest of circumstances and it means what happens when you take a poor 22-year-old boy from a shotgun house in Tupelo, Mississippi and make a god out of him.

Memphis is America.

Before Europeans came to the area, Chickasaw Indians had settled on the high bluff above the river, which came to be known as the Mississippi. The area actually divides the upper and lower Mississippi and looks south to the delta, the bayous and what we think of as the Deep South. Two rivers come together here, the mighty Mississippi and the Wolf River. For these reasons, the area was an important and strategic location from before recorded history. In the middle of the 16th century De Soto came and 150 years later the French built a fort there, Fort Prudhomme. Later the English came and in the 1800s Memphis was incorporated as a city and named after the former capital of Egypt. Today the Memphis metropolitan area has a population of nearly a million and a half, making it only slightly smaller than the metropolitan area of Nashville, though within the actual city limits Memphis is the largest city in Tennessee.

Because of its strategic location Memphis was the scene of a fierce battle in the Civil War and eventually was captured by Union forces. Devastating yellow fever epidemics followed and for a while it looked as if the city would not recover. But in spite of this, Memphis called to hundreds of freed slaves who came to the city on the bluff to work and brought with them their music. Memphis in those days had the reputation of being a wide-open, freewheeling place and as such it called to people who were excited about freedom and happy to be out from under repression. They played their music for themselves but soon discovered that others were coming to the area just to hear their music and join the fun. Memphis became famous.

It may have been partly because of this history of racial freedom and mixing that Memphis eventually became pivotal in the civil rights movement of the ’60s. Dr. Martin Luther King came to Memphis to support the strike of sanitation workers and was assassinated in Memphis on April 4, 1968. The motel where he was killed has recently been made a national historic site.

The Graceland site is in some ways exactly what one would expect and also in some ways surprising. The mansion (and that word is really not an exaggeration) stands by itself and has been protected from any overt commercial enterprise. The ticket sales, the gift shop, the hype, are on the other side of a four-lane road and a small van takes visitors back and forth. It has been left, they say, exactly as it was when Elvis lived there – at least as it was the last time he had it redecorated. It is lavish and to some probably tacky. Except that the kitchen, which, we are told, was the heart of the house and where the constant stream of guests and hangers-on congregated is amazingly small and plain. We are told that Elvis liked to eat, but the fact that fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches are said to be his favorite food may account for the fact that the kitchen does not appear to have been designed for culinary masterpieces.

But the hospitality, generosity, love of family and sentimentality that are so much a part of the Elvis Presley legend are evident everywhere in this iconic spot.

Another place where evidence of wealth abounds and is lavishly on display is in the sumptuous lobby of the Peabody Hotel on Union Avenue. Even if it weren’t for the Parade of the Ducks there is enough to see at the Peabody — elegant shops, jewelry, art works-to make the short trip downtown worthwhile. Yes, we said “Parade of the Ducks” and if you don’t know about it we won’t tell you enough to spoil it for you. Just this: ducks live in the penthouse of the hotel at night and spend their days in the lobby fountain, parading through the lobby from elevator to fountain twice a day with as much ceremony as attends the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. Another thing NOT to be missed in Memphis!

And then there’s Beale Street where the music started and where it still flourishes.
Here is the nightlife – some say the life of Memphis. Nightclub after nightclub, 30 of them in three blocks, each of them playing music you just can’t hear anywhere else. Blues, of course, the music that was born here – but also jazz, rock and roll, rhythm and blues, gospel, you name it. Pick your music and your club but if you go to BB Kings have the ribs and wherever you go expect to stay late – the musicians don’t really begin to warm up till after 10.

Plan to stay a few days and it is good idea at some point to take a tour. Otherwise, you might not know where to find the Sun Studio, the tiny store front where Elvis made that recording of “That’s All Right, Momma” that was the beginning of a wild journey for one southern boy and the beginning of a cultural shift for the entire country.

This is just a sample of what awaits you in Memphis – we haven’t even mentioned the famous St. Jude’s Hospital complex which must be seen to be believed, the Rock ‘N Soul Museum, Mississippi River Museum, Civil Rights Museum, art, opera…too much to list. You will have to come and see for yourself – and then, “Y’all come back, heah?”

]]>http://www.frontedelporto.org/?feed=rss2&p=320A Trip to Paradise – Rome Italy, City One of One Thousand We Will Visithttp://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=29
http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=29#respondWed, 23 May 2018 09:16:20 +0000http://www.frontedelporto.org/?p=29ROME

It is a city, it is a dream, it is a memory of seemingly unlimited and unending power. It is history itself. It defines the word “empire.” The Eternal City. Roma. Rome.

One of the guidebooks claims that one can turn any corner in Rome and run into “something beautiful and unexpected that was placed there centuries ago, apparently in the most casual fashion.” This is not hyperbole, it is literally true.

The legend is that if you throw a coin into the Trevi fountain, in the heart of the city, you will someday return. The fact that the bottom of the fountain is each day covered anew with coins demonstrates that visitors hope to come back to this place that represents so much of civilization’s past. Only the New World countries have a history that was not directly shaped by the people of this city. But even most of the inhabitants of the Americas came from countries, which, themselves, bore the indelible stamp of the Roman Empire, which, for centuries, ruled most of the then-known world.

Early Rome was a republic ruled over by Gaius Julius Caesar, who was assassinated in 44 B.C.E. After ten years of civil war and political chaos his heir, who came to be known as Caesar Augustus, established the monarchy, which brought in the Empire, two hundred years of prosperity and the Pax Romana (Roman Peace.) Rome ruled supreme over most of what we now know as Europe and it was said that a Roman citizen could travel anywhere without being in danger — no one would dare harm him. Because of this, people from the outlying provinces converged on the city to become politicians, military personnel and artisans – but mostly to become simply Roman citizens. Rome quickly became the center of art, culture and economy in the entire Mediterranean world. Although the empire crumbled centuries ago, the mystique of Rome has hardly diminished today. Built on the famous seven hills, the city has lived up to the legend that “all roads lead to Rome.” As the guidebooks claim, it is impossible to turn a corner without encountering a building or ruin or monument, which is like a living postcard.

Then, of course, there is Vatican City, St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museum, which houses in its complex interior the Sistine Chapel. Although it is clearly a separate entity and not part of the city life, that alone would attract thousands of visitors no matter where it was located. Michelangelo’s Pieta, the famous statue of Mary holding the body of Jesus, right inside the entrance to St. Peter’s, is one of the thousands of works of art in the city that make it hard to believe that these eternal masterpieces are really there, in flesh and blood so to speak, for ordinary people to see, if not touch.

Besides the Vatican, three of the most-visited landmarks in the city are the Coliseum, the Trevi Fountain and the ruins of the Forum.

Take a walk down the Corso, one of the busiest streets in the city, past dozens of clothing and art shops, follow the crowd to what feels like the very heart of Rome and you will come across the magnificent statuary of the Trevi Fountain. Bernini began the work, it was continued by Pietro de Cortona and finished a hundred years later, by Nicola Salvi. The fountain depicts Neptune as the King of the Sea looking down on his subjects from a chariot pulled by galloping and plummeting sea horses.

At 85 feet high and 65 feet wide, Trevi is the largest of the many fountains of Rome. Most of these fountains were built to mark the terminus of the aqueducts, which carried pure water to Rome. Today the fountain has modern pumps and the water is oxidized to keep it fresh.

Although some of today’s Romans will outwardly scorn the Trevi because it was made famous by an American movie (Three Coins in the Fountain) most are proud of it, as can be attested to by the groups of school children gathered around teachers lecturing at the base of the fountain on any spring day.

Perhaps even more famous and familiar a site to people all over the world is the Coliseum. This magnificent ruin has been reproduced so often and in so many different media that it is startling to come upon it while strolling down the Via Imperiali, the wide avenue that cuts through the city and takes one to most of the major attractions. Suddenly there it is, just as you have seen it hundreds of times. In spite of its ruined condition there is a strange thrill in standing where so many fought and died – where the lives of Christians and gladiators were saved or snuffed out at the whim of an emperor or an audience.

During the day there are always many tourists waiting to get inside the Coliseum and use the audio tour equipment. But come back at night and it is possible to feel the ghosts of those who witnessed, or experienced, either glory or violent death, strolling the ruined aisles.

Between the Coliseum and the Trevi Fountain, on the Via Imperiali, it is impossible to walk by what is left of the Roman Forum without going onto the “grounds” and invoking the memories of the feet that walked there so long ago and the events that took place which still impact many cultures.

The Forum, if not the geographic center of Rome, was the center of art, religion, politics and economics. In other words, all of the things that made Rome was it was. It held this position from at least 7 BCE to 4 CE.

The hills of Roman – most notably the Palantine and the Capitoline-surround the small valley that contains the remains of the Forum. The Senate met there and all important public meetings were held there. Because of this it was once crowded with innumerable statues and monuments honoring public officials. Temples and basilica honoring the gods were everywhere.

Quite naturally, the importance of the Forum as the symbolic, and actual, seat of Roman power meant that when there were political fights this is where they took place and as a result many buildings and monuments were damaged over the years. It was not until the 20th century that full and systematic excavation of the area took place and it is now possible to view enough of the ancient structures, whether original or restored, to appreciate the glory that once was the Roman Forum.

These are only a few of the sights to be taken in around the Rome. We have not spoken of the lovely Spanish Steps, the perfect architecture of the Pantheon, the Church of the Holy Cross with the tombs of Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Donatello, Macchievelli, Dante, Marconi, Fermi and Galileo and on and on. Churches not even mentioned in guidebooks contain amazing frescoes and, of course, everywhere is the work of Michelangelo.

It would be impossible to see everything in one trip, so if you go to Rome be sure to throw a coin into the Trevi, thereby assuring your return. The Eternal City will be waiting for you.